After bartering with the Utah Jazz for Kris Dunn in the offseason, many viewed him as another depth piece for the LA Clippers' second unit. Fans knew he was a good defender, but his offensive limitations would keep him away from a role over 20 minutes per game.
Conversely, Dunn had the approach of proving he could be a winner every minute he was on the court. Whether head coach Tyronn Lue played him 10 or 30, the veteran guard ensured capitalization on his defensive hustle.
The beauty of Lue's regular season blueprint is that he loves experimenting with different five-man lineups with players in the active rotation. Dunn, being the ball hawk he is, eventually started as a complimentary guard to stars Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, and Ivica Zubac.
With Dunn and assistant Jeff Van Gundy on the same page, opposing superstars have had trouble making an offensive impact. He is always looking to poke the ball free from the hands of players much more prominent in size, expanding LA's chances to score.
However, Dunn will fall short of the NBA's All-Defensive requirements despite his excellent defensive performances. This is unfair, as the rule book fails to account for players in unique situations.
The newly implemented minutes benchmark prevents Dunn from making the NBA's All-Defensive teams
The primary reason the NBA pushed out the 65-game criteria for awards and honors was to combat superstars who would load-manage unreasonably during the season. This was a fair rationale, but what came with this rule was a minutes requirement.
Moreover, Dunn will be ineligible for All-Defensive teams because he has too many games below 20 minutes.
Dunn is averaging 6.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists on the season, shooting 42.8% from the field in 60 games. He is also second in the NBA in steals per game, third in total steals, and ninth in deflections.
Additionally, he has the second-best defensive rating on the Clippers, one of the top defensive teams in the league.
Furthermore, reaching back a decade ago, Tony Allen, one of the NBA's all-time great defensive guards, was a lock for the prestigious honor as long as he played a fair amount of minutes. If the criteria had been established during Allen's time, several of his achievements would have vanished.
That said, executives must study Dunn's case in the offseason and adjust their measures. This is only right, as his miraculous efforts, plus others around the league, have earned an honor on the NBA's All-Defensive teams.